Naruto: the Lightning Chronicles
by Xenomorph 13-A
Summary: Orochimaru's found a new way to get the leaf village destroyed...Put them at war with their desert neighbor by capturing two Leaf Genin and one Sand Genin. NarutoxDaemons/HDM. No Pairings. Discontinued for the moment.
1. Sasuke and Arnesia

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or His Dark Materials…but I wish I did…**

**So here's my Crossover, a bit AU…**

**Naruto: The Lightning Chronicles  
Chapter One  
Sasuke and Arnesia**

"Sasuke." The swan on Sasuke's shoulder whispered to him, bowing her white head to speak to him, "You're agitated about something, aren't you? Don't try to hide it, I can tell."

"Arnesia," replied Sasuke in a whisper, not turning his head to look and keeping his eyes focused on the person in front. "Arnesia, it's really nothing."

"If it was nothing then I wouldn't feel it would I?" retorted Arnesia quietly, hopping down on the desk in front of Sasuke so she could look him in the eyes to speak to him, "any business of yours is business of mine."

"The Chuunin exams…" replied Sasuke, "I'm worried about them. Happy?"

"No, Sasuke, I'm not happy." Arnesia whispered, "But that's only because you  
aren't."

"Fine then." Replied Sasuke. "Let's just sit and hope that Naruto and Kaedra can get some answers on their paper before the time's up."

"I wouldn't expect it." Sighed Arnesia, turning her head to look over at Naruto and Kaedra up front, both clutching their heads, Kaedra changing into a dog and leaping onto the floor to run in circles, "That Kaedra's a dope, you haven't met her."

"But I've met Naruto, and know well enough that he may not be smart enough to figure out what to do." Sasuke whispered, picking up Arnesia and putting her in his lap, Arnesia sighing and putting her head on the desk between Sasuke's arms.

A small whizzing noise made Sasuke look up from the bird he had set down in his lap. A kunai knife had gone flying past Naruto and stuck in the paper of the Shinobi behind him.

"What was that for?!" said the boy, sanding up, his parrot daemon squawking angrily.

"You messed up five times." Said one of the ninja watching for cheaters, "You fail."

"No, no way." Said the kid, looking nervous and upset.

"The two on his team, get out of here." Said the ninja, "Right now."

Two other ninja in the room stood up and all three made their slow way toward the door, a dog, a parrot, and a kiwi following them. "Damn it." Said one.

Sasuke turned his attention back to his teammate, who was looking at Hinata, who was sitting next to him, probably in a pathetic and obvious attempt at cheating. Sasuke sighed.

"This is working well." Said Arnesia, holding up Sasuke's paper to look at it.

"I was going to copy a few more people, but…" Sasuke whispered in Arnesia's ear so no one could hear, "I hit the jackpot with him." He gestured to the ninja in front of him. Arnesia nodded and dropped Sasuke's paper back onto the desk.

"No. 102, stand up." Said one of the watching Ninja, "You fail."

"No. 23, you fail."

"43 and 27, you fail."

"That's 13 teams that have failed." Said Arnesia, looking up at the clock then at Sasuke as another team of Ninja that walked out the door."

"Do you have proof that I cheated 5 times?!" said one of the failed ninja, "Are you watching all-"

Suddenly, one of the watching Ninja leapt up and pinned the ninja against the wall, saying "Listen, among Chuunins we are the elite that were assembled to watch over this exam. We haven't missed anything you've done, you could say that this strength is out proof."

A couple of minutes passed before the proctor looked up and said, "OK, we will now start the tenth question."

"Pfft, about time." Said Arnesia, a scowl on her face from having to wait.

"Now before we get to it, I'd like to go over the added rules for this question." Said the proctor coldly, half the room looking up in surprise.

"I'll now explain, these are the rules of desperation." The proctor explained, "For this tenth question, you must decide whether you'll take it or not."

Choose whether to take it? Thought Sasuke.

"Choose?!" Sasuke and Arnesia looked over to see a blonde kunouchi with a snarling leopard sitting near to her on the desk, "What if we choose not to?!"

"if you choose not to," said the proctor, "your points will be reduced to zero and you fail! Along with your two teammates."

"What does that mean?!" Sasuke heard someone yell.

"Of course we'll decide to take the question!!" someone else shouted.  


Sasuke heard not only murmuring, but screeching, barking, snarling daemons from several places in the room.

"If you choose to take it," the proctor started back up again, "and answer incorrectly, you will never be able to take the Chuunin selection exams again."

"What kind of stupid rule is that?!" Sasuke turned to see the dog kid, Kiba, yelling. His daemon and Akamaru both barking, "There are guys here who have taken the exam before!"

"You guys were unlucky, this year it's my rules." said the proctor, Sasuke just noticing the fox sitting at his feet. Maybe he wasn't telling them the whole truth…

"But I'm giving you a way out." Said the proctor, "Those who aren't confident can choose not to take it and try again next year. Now let's begin, the tenth question."

"Those who wish no to take it," piped up a female voice, the fox trotting up from behind the proctor, "raise your hand. Once your number is confirmed, leave."

Several numbers were confirmed and failed for the next couple minutes, luckily not Sasuke's team. Arnesia was looking Kaedra in the eye, hoping that her human wouldn't be stupid enough to raise his hand, but he did.

Suddenly, Naruto slapped his hand down on the desk. "Don't underestimate me!" he said, "I will not run! I'll take it, even if I' a genin forever, I'll will myself to becoming Hokage anyway, so I don't care! I am not afraid!"

He wasn't thinking about us at all. Thought Sasuke.

"What guts." Said Arnesia, finishing the thought he had had.

"I'll ask you again, your life is riding on this decision. This is your last chance to quit." Said the proctor, his daemon nodding patiently.

"I follow my unbending words." Said Naruto, Kaedra, cat formed, purring at his side, "That's my ninja way."

"Good decisions." Said the proctor, "To everyone still remaining…"

"What could it be?" Arnesia whispered. The entire room seemed to hold it's breath waiting for an answer.

"I congratulate you on passing the first test!" the proctor announced, smiling.

"Wait, what do you mean?" Sasuke turned to see his kunouchi teammate, Sakura and her daemon Arakion speaking this time, "We already pass? What about the tenth question?"

"There never was one." Said the proctor's daemon, smiling, "or you could say that the two choices were 

the tenth question."

"Hey!" said the girl with the leopard daemon from before, "Then what were the first nine questions for! They were pointless!"

"They were not pointless." Said the proctor, "They had already served their intended purpose. To test you individual information gathering ability. That was their purpose. First, as the rules explained, success on this test is based on the whole team doing well. That puts stress on each member not to mess it up for their teammates. Of course the questions on this test were not the types that a mere genin could answer. I'm sure most people came to the conclusion that to score points they'd have to cheat."

"Basically the premise of this test was to cheat." Sasuke said to Arnesia.

"as cheating targets we had two or so of the Chuunin stationed." Said the proctor, "To help you guys out."

"HAHAH!" Sasuke and Arnesia heard Naruto pipe up, "I saw right through that! You'd have to be a moron not to see that!"

He hadn't noticed it himself, either. Thought Sasuke, slightly embarrassed at his teammate's stupidity.

"But those that cheat poorly," said the proctor, "Fail of course."

At this, the proctor removed his headband, the kind that covered your head, to reveal a mess of scars and holes. "Because at times information is more important than life." He said, "and on missions and the battlefield, people risk their lives to get their hands on it."

"horrible burns, screw holes, scars…" said Arnesia, whispering to Sasuke from her position on his lap with her willowy, graceful voice, "The after effects of torture."


	2. Temari and Kozono

**Naruto: The Lightning Chronicles**

**Chapter 2**

**+Temari and Kazono+**

The next few minutes were all explaining. Mission this, Tenth question that. All he really explained was that the tenth question tested your will and courage and the other nine your ability to gather information, then the next proctor dropped in early, embarrassing herself, and she told them to meet at this forest place the next day.

Temari heard Kazono sigh from his place next to her as she got up to leave like everyone else, setting down her test and her pencil on the table.

"What is it, Kazono." Temari asked, rubbing her hand over the leopard's yellow fur.

"It was rather boring, you know it. That's all." The leopard replied, standing easily up on powerful paws.

"Good then." Temari replied easily, beginning to walk off, and then turning to wait for Gaara and Kankurou to catch up.

When the other two sand siblings caught up, all three started on their way, both the raven-formed Louna and the leopard-formed Kazono scuttling away from Gaara and Tara as they trotted after, as if the two were some kind of plague that would kill them if they got too close. So Kazono walked on the right and Louna the left, and Gaara and his Raccoon walked in the middle.

"Hey, Gaara," Temari heard Kankurou say, "How long are you gonna avoid combat?"

Gaara didn't say anything.

"I mean, at the beginning of the test when that fight broke out you didn't jump in." Kankurou continued.

"Idiot." Said Gaara, "If I had jumped in then we all would have gotten disqualified. It would have ruined the mission."

Louna was no longer walking clumsily besides Kankurou, but was clenched tightly in the jaws of Tara, flapping wildly after being pounced on by the raccoon. I was obvious by Kankurou's reaction that he could feel the animal's jaw's clenched around his waist as much as Louna did, but he was trying not to show it despite the fact that everyone could tell. Kazono cowered into the wall.

"Since when did you care about the mission?!" Kankurou snapped, regretting it as the animal's grip tightened around the raven in its mouth, probably puncturing flesh by now.

"I want to fight Sasuke." Gaara replied simply, Tara releasing Louna as the bird flapped clumsily onto Kankurou's shoulder and the boy's muscles relaxed.

"You don't go picking a fight, Temari." Kazono warned, though his caution was unneeded.

"You coward." Temari replied, "I'm not stupid. I'll stay back so you don't get beaten up."

Kazono glared at her, his expression saying something along the lines of "Shut. Up. Please."

"I love you too." She said to the leopard, causing him to sigh again and continue walking after her.

The sun shone on the streets outside, the tall buildings of Konoha towering over the three Sunagakure Ninja, but not menacingly. In a way of something Large, round and cute. Not the noble appearance of a Shinobi village. None of the three commented and just went to the place where they were staying, none of them wanting to chat right now, they were silent. Kazono trailed along behind Temari, as familiar as her own shadow by now. She was the only one who had never tried to see how far Kazono could go from her. Gaara hadn't either, but he had good reason not to. Temari has just not wanted to leave Kazono. What would the benefit be if your soul could leave you?

As her brothers walked up to the entrance to their temporary home, Temari said to them, "I'm going out training. I'll meet you two back here later."

"Fine." Gaara replied, "Just don't go off spying too far."

Kazono scowled at Gaara. That nosy bastard.

Well, he knew she was lying. Oh well. He would leave her and Kankurou alone for now…at least that's what they hoped.

The training fields outside Konoha weren't full of Ninja. Most likely all of them wanted to preserve their strength, so Temari was one of the few there. The other three she saw there she had seen at the Written Exam room, one of them was rather odd…a bright green spandex with huge eyebrows. His daemon was a Squirrel, it seemed fitting. The other boy was in white, his daemon a regal-looking golden eagle, staring around with its sharp eyes. Then there was the girl. She didn't seem exactly powerful or special in any way, especially with a Porcupine standing next to her. Temari smirked. The only one that might have enough power to beat her would be the boy and his eagle, and even then she doubted he would lay a scratch on her.

From where Temari was she could see them, but not very clearly. She was a ways off, standing in the trees at the edge of the training field. As much as she wanted to be on it, she knew that if she went down there, someone would start a fight, whether it be her, Kazono, or them, and she would end up getting herself hurt, which is the last thing she needed.

So Temari was stuck in the tree, waiting for the other team to leave. She could have gone back and stayed with Kankurou and Gaara, but that would have been no fun, and she could have gathered supplies for the next challenge, but she doubted she would need them. So she could just stay there and wait. She set her fan down on the tree branch.

Temari and Kazono had never seen how far they could go from each other. She hadn't seen a reason to before, but she was curious as to what would happen. She had seen when Kankurou had tried it, and all that ended up happening was both of them screaming and running back to each other, but they were only five or six then. Even if it _was_ the same, she would keep her mouth shut about it.

Temari looked over at Kazono, it was obvious they shared the idea. How far? Kazono took a step forward and looked back at Temari, and she nodded shakily, thinking back to what had happened again. Kazono took two steps forward now being a little further than he often was from her. Then he began walking, further and further…It surprised Temari at how much it hurt as he strained against their bond, more than she had expected. She clutched the ground hard in an attempt to numb the pain. Pain and…was it sadness? Kazono was having trouble going any further now, and with every step it hurt more.

"Kazono, come back!" she finally called, relieved as he leapt onto her lap and she clutched him tightly, wanting at that moment to just keep him near. _Now _she knew why Kankurou had advised against it after trying it.

"That was unexpected…" Kazono said quietly. Temari just clutched him tightly.

After the two had recovered Temari released Kazono and the two stood up, both of them shaking, though not as violently as before.

"Remind me to never listen to you again." Kazono said to Temari.

"You had the same idea, you know." Temari replied.

"Curiosity killed the leopard." Kazono said, frowning.

"I felt it too you know." Temari replied, "Besides, look."

Kazono turned to see what Temari was looking at, before he even turned his head he felt the presence of something watching him. Looking at him, or looking through him, was the eagle. The boy was still turned away, but the burning gaze of the bird seemed to shoot through them both.

"Great, we've been spotted." Kazono sighed.

"There's someone watching us." Temari heard the boy say to his two teammates, and both of them looked up to see her.

No use hiding now, she might as well go down there and tell them to keep off. Kazono leapt down from the tree, Temari picked up her fan and followed.

"I bet they saw when you yelled earlier." Kazono said.

"You know as well as I do that that hurt." Temari answered.

"Come down from there." The boy called.

Temari leapt down from the tree, Kazono walking up from where he had been standing on the ground beneath her and opening her fan slightly.

"Alright you found us." Temari said, a smirk sliding across her face.

"What are you doing here, sand ninja." The boy asked.

"Spying on the competition." Temari replied, Kazono stalking out from behind her and hissing at the large bird, which in turn swooped down, giving the leopard a scratch across the nose that Temari could feel, "But you guys don't seem tough enough to beat me.

"What did you say!?" the kid in green yelled, putting his fist up toward her, his daemon imitating his motions from where she stood on his shoulder.

The eagle was no longer sitting on the boy's shoulder, but circling low over Kazono, which caused the leopard to become angry. Temari could feel his anger. Provoked anger. Whatever that bird was, it was taunting Kazono, telling him to attack.

In the same instant that the bird flew low, the powerful leaped up and batted the animal to the floor with a huge paw. The great feathered beast hit the ground with a sickening "Thud" that caused the young boy to cringe slightly. The bird was in the air a moment later, tearing at Kazono with furious flashing claws, sharp as knives. Temari could feel the pain, blow after blow, that Kazono was feeling. The leopard sprang up and raked it's claws from the birds neck to its stomach, causing the animal to screech loudly in pain. The attack hurt the boy too, but he was hiding it. Kazono leaped again, but missed and fell, leaving an opening for the angry eagle to grab one of the cat's ears with one of its hooked claws, and rake the other over the cat's head, leaving scratch marks all over the animal and not stopping. Kazono screamed in pain, batting the air futilely with its large claws. Kazono flipped over and caught the bird with its claws, dragging it down and biting hard on the animal's fragile wing, this time the eagle was the one screaming as Kazono ripped at the feathered appendage, then flicked his head, sending the bird flying until it's skull bashed against a nearby tree. The boy scrambled feebly over to pick up the bleeding animal, tripping once or twice on his way there, and bringing the eagle back with one hand, the other hanging limply at his side while his daemons wing swung back and forth, bent all the way behind it's back.

"Who are you?" the boy asked. There wasn't a mark on him, but his daemon looked a bit beat up, as did Kazono.

"Temari. Subaku no Temari. I'm one of the sand village ninja." She replied casually, hiding physical and mental pain from the scratches and whacks Kazono had received.

The porcupine glared at Kazono, the angry glint in it's yes nearly a challenge to Kazono, payback to the porcupine as Kazono swiped at it, resulting in a pawful or prickles. Kazono growled at the little animal as it turned its back to the leopard, but Temari picked up Kazono by the scruff and dragged him off before he could bite the porcupine and get them a mouthful of needles.

"Getting into trouble, Temari?" Gaara asked in his always-emotionless tone, "Try not to kill the leaf genin, that's the last thing we need."

"Yeah yeah…" Temari replied, pulling her ponytails down so her hair hung straight down.

"Wait until we get to the fighting portion of the exam." Gaara instructed.

"Listen, I don't need your advice." Temari snapped, immediately regretting it as Tara bowled over the already hurt form of Kazono. The leopard yelped as both him and Temari felt the sting of the wounds received in battle earlier and Kazono scurried behind Temari with his tail between his legs.

Temari turned away from Gaara and said to her daemon, "What did that bird do to us? It hurts worse than before when the pain should be wearing away."

"It's a technique of some kind I bet." Kazono replied, "Every time it hits you feel weaker."

"I can feel that too, you know." Temari whispered.

"We're tired, I certainly am; let's call it a night for now. I'm sure you can punish them tomorrow." Kazono said, walking a couple paces away then turning to wait for Temari to follow.


End file.
